New owl species discovered at Rinjani

Researchers looking for a nocturnal bird in Indonesia accidentally identified a new species of owl – one that has a distinct whistling song and is believed to exist nowhere else in the world.

The Rinjani Scops owl was first identified in 2003 and has since been spotted only on Lombok island, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the popular resort island of Bali. The findings were published Wednesday in the online journal PLOS ONE.